TALES FROM THE BOBBI LAMA

I have never seen a gardenia bush produce such an explosion of so many blossoms all at once. That is my favorite flower fragrance of all. I fell in love with it when my late husband and I went to Hawaii for our long-awaited honeymoon, 30 years after we were married. It was also his 50th birthday and we had credit cards! He bought me a gardenia bush years later after we retired and moved south to a warmer climate. Ever since, every year, I can’t wait for mid April for the first bloom. Thereafter, once there are a couple of new ones every day or so, I snip a few to make that sweet-smelling little cup full to put near my chair. I absolutely love being surprised over and over by that fragrance wafting up to my nose as I move around near my tiny bouquet. Once the bloom season is over a few weeks later, I am truly sad…never feeling I have had enough.

This past year, my friend Gail (gailandspirit.com) had sent me a gardenia bush as a congratulations for the publishing of my book (“You Don’t Know Jack!”) I was so excited! The remarkable delivery of what was to be a single bush, and for which there still is no explanation, is that there were two gardenia bushes that arrived at my door! My friend double-checked that she had only ordered one, and it was confirmed. Her only guess was that Jack’s spirit managed to double the order so that one was from him. Who knows how that works from the other side, but I was sure to thank him, letting him know I always think of him and our romantic trip to Hawaii whenever I smell a gardenia. I quickly planted the two new ones and have been tending to them with loving care ever since. They weren’t supposed to blossom in such a short time since they needed maturing, but a few days ago, there was one beautiful bloom on one of those baby bushes…standing tall, right on the top and smelling as fragrant as any flower ever! After I saw it, I went right over to the other side yard where the older, more mature bush was just to see if it had any blooms yet. I was so surprised to see the entire bush covered with those new, delicate, little white flowers as if that gardenia bush gave it every ounce of energy it had…like it exploded. I have never seen such abundance like that ever, and especially at first bloom. I think of Jack every day as I snip a few to bring inside. I am truly grateful in gardenia heaven!